MERIDIAN – The U.S. Navy Blue Angels arrived Thursday morning, March 26, at Naval Air Station Meridian ahead of the Wings Over Meridian Air Show this weekend, March 28 and 29.
Queen City Newsfeed was on hand to watch the team land and speak with members of the squadron as they arrived in Meridian for the show, which is free and open to the public.
For Capt. Adam Bryan, Blue Angel No. 1 and commanding officer and flight leader of the United States Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, the visit marks his first time in Meridian.
Bryan, who has served in the Navy for more than 20 years, is in his second year with the Blue Angels. He said this season will be his last with the team.
“As the commanding officer and flight leader, I’m first and foremost in charge with the safety and well-being of the team,” Bryan said.
“I have the honor and the opportunity to lead around the formation out here that you’re going to see both Saturday and Sunday,” he said.
Bryan said the Blue Angels perform at about 32 show sites each season and conduct roughly 65 flight demonstrations.
“There is no room for error, but that makes us concentrate even more,” Bryan said.
During the performance, he said, the precision is extreme.
“We’ll be about 12-18 inches apart from wing tip to wing tip,” Bryan said.
The Blue Angels’ arrival also spotlighted the extensive work required behind the scenes to keep the aircraft ready for flight.
“A lot of maintenance goes into keeping up these aircraft, but it’s really the pilots that make the show go on. We just try to keep the jets up so these pilots can fly in the show,” said Kayleigh Temple, an aviation structural mechanic.
Maj. Scott Laux, Blue Angel No. 6, said landing in a place with deep ties to naval aviation makes the visit especially meaningful.
“It’s really cool. It’s awesome to be somewhere that is such a part of Naval Aviation,” Laux said. “Half of our strike fighter aviators get their wings here at Meridian. It’s a place that a lot of us have passed through and trained, and on the enlisted side as well, there’s multiple school houses here where our enlisted folks have trained, so again, it’s always special when you get to go somewhere that is so important to Naval aviation and is a home for so many people.”
Laux said the team spent months preparing for the demonstration season.
“We had around 140 training flights around Naval Air Facility El Centro and NAS Pensacola as well, getting ready for the show season, refining some stuff to be able to take this product in front of the crowd,” he said.
He said the team hopes the show inspires people in Meridian, whether or not they choose a military path.
“Obviously we’re out here representing the Navy and the Marine Corps, obviously there’s a Naval Air Station here that’s important to this community, but even if folks don’t want to join the service, just be excellent at whatever you do,” Laux said. “That can start all the way as a child, all the way into later in life, so be excellent at what you do, and we hope to showcase some of that out here for the folks this weekend.”
The Wings Over Meridian Air Show will take place Saturday and Sunday at NAS Meridian. More information on attending is available at the event website.
